EPL Betting Picks - 9 May 2010

Ed Gallois picks out one SUPER VALUE bet for this weekend`s final round of Premier League action.

A nice small win on Tottenham for us on Wednesday night. The Lilywhites thoroughly deserved all three points against Man City and Harry Redknapp deserves a lot of credit for what he has done at Spurs this season.

And so here we are at the end of the Premier League season. Just one round of matches to go, with all ties set to be played at the same time on Sunday to make sure no team gets an unfair advantage.

At the top of the table, Chelsea and Manchester United continue to battle it out for the title. The Blues are clearly in the driving seat with an extra point on the board and superior goal difference, but stranger things have happened in football, to quote Alex Ferguson.

My view is that both sides will comfortably beat their respective opposition on Sunday and by backing free-scoring Chelsea on the handicap we will end the season on a betting high. United are value giving up 2 ¼ goals against a lacklustre and falling-apart-at-the-seams Stoke, but I think Chelsea are more likely to demolish their opponents, and so we should concentrate all of our betting power on that tie.

All of the other remaining Premiership games have little or nothing riding on the outcome, so it’s best to avoid them.

Chelsea vs Wigan

Chelsea displayed all the hallmarks of champions at Anfield last weekend by defeating Liverpool 2-0. It’s no secret that Rafa Benitez’s men have had a poor season, but they are still tough to beat at home and Chelsea put them away with ease.

The most worrying aspect for Man United and their title chances must be the amount of chances Chelsea created at Anfield. If the West London side can carve up Liverpool at will away from home, you suspect they will destroy Wigan in front of their own fans.

In Chelsea’s last three EPL home games they’ve beaten Stoke 7-0, Bolton 1-0 and Aston Villa 7-1. With the title at stake and Wigan just making up the numbers, I see no reason why the Blues can’t stuff Wigan by a similar scoreline that they beat Stoke and Villa.

Of course there will be a lot of pressure on the hosts to deliver both the three points and the league in front of their expectant fans, and that may stymie Chelsea at first, but once the first goal goes in, and it’s hard to think it won’t given the quality of Chelsea’s play, I can see them winning by a hatful. Didier Drogba, in particular, will be keen to get on the scoresheet as he is currently equal top goalscorer with Wayne Rooney.

As I’ve pointed out for some months, Wigan are the most inconsistent side in the country. They could turn up at Stamford Bridge and set the cat amongst the pigeons or – and this is much, much more likely I think – capitulate from the outset. After all, they have nothing to play for and I suspect some of their players will already be thinking about their long summer holiday.

My prediction is for Chelsea to win by a handsome margin. Taking a team that is giving up a 2 ¼ goal handicap is always a risk, but Chelsea are in scintillating form right now and can easily win this match by 3 goals or more. This is a very good bet and I will placing a sizeable stake on Chelsea to cover the handicap.

Bet 5pts on Chelsea giving up 2 ¼ goals at 1.72 with Bet365

Thank you to all Betasia readers for following my Premier League tips for the last few months. If you add up the pluses and minus from each week’s betting you’ll see we finished easily in the black. There’s no room for complacency on my part, however, and next season I will do my utmost to continue maximising our profits.

The next pick pack will be the Europa League final, followed by the Champions League final, and make sure you stick around for the World Cup when I will be offering my exclusive free tips throughout the tournament. All at Betasia.com.